Park sets ambitious goals for presidency

By Madison Park and KJ Kwon, CNN

Updated 2:42 PM ET, Thu December 20, 2012

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South Korea's President Park – President-elect Park Geun-Hye, South Korea's first female president, waves to supporters after being declared the winner on December 19, 2012 in Seoul. She will become one of several female leaders in Asia, as well as the world.

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Australia's Prime Minister Gillard – Julia Gillard, the first woman in Australia to hold the position as prime minister, assumed office in 2010. She made a fiery speech about sexism that drew global attention in October.

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Thailand's Prime Minister Yingluck – Yingluck Shinawatra became Thailand's first female prime minister in 2011 after her party won a majority of parliamentary seats. She is the younger sister of one of Thailand's most polarizing political figures, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

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Bangladesh' Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina – Sheikh Hasina is the prime Minister of Bangladesh. She is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led efforts for autonomy from Pakistan and was killed in a coup.

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Brazil's President Rousseff – Dilma Rousseff assumed office in January 2011, becoming the first woman to become Brazil's president. Other female leaders in Latin America are Laura Chinchilla and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, presidents of Costa Rica and Argentina, respectively.

Liberia's President Johnson Sirleaf – Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has been Liberia's president since 2006. In 2011, she won the Nobel Peace Prize along with two others for their women's rights advocacy. Another female president in sub-Saharan Africa is President Joyce Banda in Malawi, who took office in 2012.

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Lithuania's President and Denmark's PM – Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaitė and Denmark's Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt talk with France's former President Sarkozy at a European Union summit on January 30, 2012 in Brussels. There are several female presidents and prime ministers in Europe.

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Chancellor Angela Merkel – German Chancellor Angela Merkel has served the country since 2005 and is a powerful champion of the European Union.

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Story highlights

Park Geun-hye will become next president of South Korea

She pledged to take care of citizens in a time of economic anxiety

South Korea is a strategic Western ally and Asia's fourth-largest economy

Emerging from victory, Park Geun-hye who will become the next president of South Korea -- the first woman for the Asian nation -- pledged to "take care of our people one-by-one."

In a speech made at the headquarters of her Saenuri political party Thursday morning, she invoked a phrase coined by her father, Park Chung-hee, who also served as president in an era when he was encouraging people to pull South Korea out of poverty.

"I would like to re-create the miracle of 'let's live well' so people can worry less about their livelihood and young people can happily go to work," said Park.

Park, 60, will assume office in February, in a country grappling with income inequality, angst over education and employment prospects for its youth, and strained relations with North Korea. South Korea is also a strategic Western ally and the fourth-largest economy in Asia.

Park won 52% of the vote, compared with 48% for her rival, Moon Jae-in of the Democratic United Party, according to the country's National Election Commission.

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Both the president-elect and Moon, the liberal candidate, had similarly moderate plans, addressing income inequality, reigning in the power of family-owned conglomerates and improving relations with North Korea.

"This wasn't the knockdown, drag out, left-against-right type of campaign," said David Kang, professor of international relations and business at the University of Southern California. "There's a surprising consensus about taking a more moderate stance."

"I think Park won by acting to the center. Her claims are that she's going to moderate many of the policies of the previous administration."

Park acknowledged Moon and his supporters Thursday.

"I believe there is common ground between myself and Moon Jae-in," she said. "We are both willing to work for the country and for the people of South Korea.

"Whether you were for or against me, I want to hear your opinions. I will try to stop the separation and conflict that has been going on for the last half century through reconciliation and harmony."

Park of the Saenuri party, won the highest office in a conservative Asian nation with traditional gender values.

Just because a woman has won the presidency, it doesn't mean South Korea has achieved everything it needs in terms of gender equality, said Kang, who is also director of Korean Studies Institute at USC.

"That a woman could be elected in South Korea is historic and important. At the same time, what you basically have to do is be political royalty. So I think gender roles are changing in South Korea. It's a step forward, but let's also remember how unique she is as a person."

Park is the daughter of former President Park Chung-hee, whose legacy left the Korean public divided. Some claim he was a dictator who ignored human rights and cracked down on dissent, while others credit him with bringing economic development to South Korea. Her father was assassinated in 1979.

President-elect Park Geun-hye bows in front of the grave of her father.

On Thursday, she paid her respects to her parents by visiting their graves at the National Cemetery in Seoul.

As in many other elections around the world, the economy reigned as the No. 1 issue for South Korean voters. Park has made ambitious promises to address those anxieties.

"I will create a society in which no one is left behind and everyone can share the fruits of economic development," she said. "I believe that only this can bring unity, economic democratization and happiness for people.

She also mentioned North Korea describing its recent rocket launch as a "serious security situation."

Park received congratulatory messages from Korea's outgoing President Lee Myung-bak as well as one from U.S. President Barack Obama.

The United States and South Korea enjoy "stable relations," Kang said.

"Park is going to have to weigh U.S. as its main security ally and China as its main economic partner. That balancing act - keeping both with good relations - at some point, may become difficult," he said.